Math update

Counting to 100
In mathematics, we have been working on counting by 1s, 2s, 5s, and 10s in French.  By the end of grade 1, students should be able to count to 100 forwards and backwards, skip count by 2 to 20, and by 5 and 10 to 100.  This weekend for La lecture chez moi, I will be sending home a 100 chart for students to practice this and also to use it as a tool for exploring and completing their 100 project (due on Tuesday).  Students will be asked to present their 100 objects to the class and demonstrate that it is 100 by skip counting by 10. 

Addition and Subtraction
By the end of grade 1, students should be able to add and subtract numbers up to 18. 

Fun fact: Research shows that students proficient in math skills are able to use various strategies to decompose numbers in order to solve problems efficiently (ie. 6 + 5 is the same as 6+4 and 1 more), whereas most students tend to only use the strategies of counting all or counting on, which take more time and can slow students down in later grades as the math becomes more complex.  Click here to watch a short video that explains this further if I've peaked your curiosity. 

In addition to teaching students to count all objects or to count on when solving addition or subtraction problems, here are some other things the students are (or will be) learning about: 

- number facts to 10
- double addition facts
- adding/subtracting 0, 1, and 10 to/from a number
- how to use a  number line, number chart, or 10-frame, and other manipulatives to solve problems

We have been (and will continue to be) playing many games and activities in order to practice skills, in addition to the more traditional worksheets.

I have found a fun math game to practice number facts to 10 that your son or daughter could try at home:  http://akidsheart.com/math/mathgames/addtoten.htm

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me.